Birth replacement ratios in Europe: 1960-2000

José Antonio Ortega, Universidad de Salamanca
Luis Alberto Del Rey Poveda, Universidad de Salamanca

European reproduction trends are traced using a new period replacement indicator: the Birth Replacement Ratio (BRR). The BRR is a replacement ratio that compares the period number of births to the mean size of the mothers’ generation at birth. In contrast with the Net Reproduction Ratio, differences between the Total Fertility Rate (TFR) and the BRR are not due to period mortality. They reflect cohort mortality, cohort out-migration and mothers’ immigration. The application to a number of European countries between 1960 and 2000 shows interesting contrasts between the TFR and the BRR which trace the demographic history of the respective countries.